It's Soccer Season!

Last weekend we were able to catch one of Nate's soccer games. Luckily for us, it was just up the road. We had fun hanging out with Tanner too. It was a nice, warm, beautiful day!

Tanner photo-bombed me.... I was confused and trying to get the camera to work. Guess what. It works.

Juggling

Wallace Girls' Weekend

Last weekend Carrie, Jess and I had a girls' weekend. We left Nate with Spencer and Carrie treated us to pedicures.

This picture was taken after dinner at Cheesecake Factory

Then we headed to Ogden for the night. We had to finish our cheesecake there.

The next morning we got up for a conference at Weber State titled: When Life Gets Hard. Jessica wanted to go to this one because Meg Johnson was one of the speakers. It was really good and we got Meg Johnson to sign our books.

This is Meg's link to her blog post about the conference. http://megjohnsonspeaks.com/2014/05/life-gets-hard-conference/

The other speakers were John Bytheway and Hank Smith, both were also really awesome.

We went shopping after that and I was looking at pencil skirts. I did not find any in my size though. Yesterday when I checked the mail, I found a package from JCPenny. I didn't order anything, and Spencer didn't order anything. Inside I found a pencil skirt, in my size, sent by Carrie :) Awe! Thanks Carrie!

Women's Conference 2014

I had a great time at Women's Conference. On Thursday I was there by myself, but it's no big deal because you just go around to separate class sessions anyway. 2014 Women's Conference theme was Psalms 84:11 

                              For the Lord God is a sun and shield: the Lord will give grace and glory: 

no good thing will He withhold from them that walk uprightly. 

The opening speaker was Sheri Dew and she was really awesome. Her talk was on grace. Some of the things she said that I liked were: 


"Grace=power. Power to do things we could not do on our own." 

"The Lord shows us our weakness that we may see His grace."

"...experience a change of heart to do good continually."

"Conversion requires immersion."

She said a lot of other great things but those are the ones that really stuck out.


Then I attended one class that was really great and one not so really great. But I loved the class on "Communication in Marriage". A husband and wife gave the presentations on that. Some of my favorite things said were:

"Communication is more than the sharing of words."

"There are 7 basic needs that create the acronym STARVED. They are Safety, Trust, Appreciation, Respect, Validation, Encouragement, and Dedication. When one of those is threatened or not there, we feel starved."

"Marriages and family create a Paradox - we love them, but they drive us crazy."
                          There was a lot said about the paradox idea and I loved it.

Then I missed the rest of the activities for that day because I had to get back to Salt Lake to play for the U's commencement. That ended up being really cool too because Alex Smith was the key speaker there.


On Friday, I was able to meet up with Carrie. The opening speakers were Linda K. Burton - General Relief Society President, Bonnie L. Oscarson - General YW President, and Rosemary M. Wixom - General Primary President. They were all fantastic. From Sister Burton I liked her analogy of a child playing the piano and the Master whispering "don't quit, keep playing". She said "we may forget in the heat of our trials that the Lord is aware of us."

From Sister Oscarson I liked:
"It is not enough to know about the Atonement - the Atonement must be internalized and become personal and individualized." 




From Sister Wixom I liked:

"Nothing will startle us more than to pass through the veil and realize how well we know our Father."

"[Jesus said], if you will come unto me, I will show unto you your weakness."

My favorite class for that day was: Coping With Stress Through Good Nutrition & Sleep Habits. The first presenter talked about eating balanced diets and eating a variety of foods. She gave 6 rules of what she called "intuitive eating". 1) Make peace with food - get ride of ideas like good/bad and should/should not. 2) Honor your hunger. 3) Respect your fullness. 4) Discover satisfaction factors; like eating at the table with family. 5) Honor your feelings w/o using food; find alternatives to address emotions. 6) Respect your body; it's about health, not body size/image.

The second presenter talked about stress being a part of our human experience and it helps us grow. He said sleep is how we unwind and it is best to have a regular sleep schedule. He said our bodies like a regular schedule.

The closing remarks were Elder Quentin L. Cook and his wife. Some of the things from Sister Cook I liked were:
"We make our own happiness, no matter what trials we face."

"We can be happy and positive regardless of what comes our way. ... Being able to laugh keeps you going."

Elder Cook said:
"Do not underestimate your influence. ...Even if you feel inadequate - it is enough."

"If Christ came tonight, to whom would he come? Or, if Christ came tonight, who would be ready to receive Him?"

"We create Zion in our hearts and homes."

"Love is the key ingredient to happiness."

I was really glad I could go. :)

Easter Eggs!

This year we did the annual Easter Eggs here in Salt Lake because I had some friends who heard about the notorious Easter extravaganza, and they wanted in on the action too. Heather, Caulene, Dana and Dawn were kind enough to drive up and share their awesome-ness with us all.

2014 East Egg Theme: Video Game Characters!

Elise's eggs.

...so... Heather and Caulene got a hold of the camera.

These are Spencer's.

Diana's

These are Isaac's.

These are Kindra's. She totally won.

Jazz Game

One of the great things about working for Huntsman is that I can get tickets to really awesome events, like the Utah Symphony and the Utah Jazz. This time I spared Spencer the Symphony and we went to a Jazz game instead. It was super fun. Ryan and Sarah went with us too.

I was able to get 4 lower bowl seats :)

Spencer got me the biggest ice-cream cone in the whole world.

....and expected me to eat it.

Spencer finished his.

And this was as far as I got. But he did pick Moose Tracks, which is totes my favorite.

The Jazz lost... but the game was fun. Actually the best part was the McDonald's Dunk Team after the 3rd quarter. Seriously. YouTube it or something.

It's Electric!

This is my new bike motor that I saved my bonus for!  It goes in my front bike wheel (bottom picture) and makes my commute easier.  The battery goes on my rear cargo rack and wires up to the front wheel.  Then there is a switch on my handlebars to give me the needed boost!  Kudos to Brooke for tolerating me as I turned the front room into a horrific scene of bicycle-assembly carnage!

The finished product, barely noticeable and very convenient!